How come my lab test says I’m “normal” but I still feel like s#!t?
One of the things I love about being an FDN is the ability to utilize functional lab testing. Functional lab tests allow me to correlate your specific symptoms to find root causes and also uncover true healing opportunities to help you regain balance and health.
How is functional lab testing different from labs you may have gotten at your physician’s office? Great question!
First, let’s start by explaining lab ranges.
When a lab is creating a lab range, they take the average of a whole bunch of people taking the lab to determine the preferred range, or what your doctor might say is “normal.” This pool of people can include really, really healthy people, as well as people who are really, really sick which results in a wide range of what is considered “normal.” When a doctor looks at a lab test, they use that range to see if you fall within the range (normal) or out of the range (not normal or sick) which generally then points the finger to a specific condition or disease for treating.
If you go to your doctor with symptoms of weight gain, fatigue, brain fog, and poor sleep they might say, “oh, that sounds like it could be a thyroid issue.” Your doctor will then run a thyroid test. If your test comes back “normal” they will send you away because there’s nothing they can really do for you, you’re just not sick enough. This is frustrating and discouraging because you know you’re not crazy, you really do feel lousy. If your test comes back out of range, then you will get a prescription for a medication to bring your thyroid back into range, but no suggestions or support for how to actually heal your faulty thyroid. What happens if the symptoms come back, or new ones appear? More tests and more medications but no real solutions.
The medical model is based on diagnosing and treating a specific disease or managing symptoms, essentially treating the symptoms or your test results. Medicine relies on pharmaceuticals to treat the symptoms, which may work for a while. Unfortunately, this never truly addresses the underlying causes, so symptoms reappear or shift to new symptoms or problems. This often puts patients in a cycle of trial and error, constantly chasing a new diagnosis and treatment but never getting better.
In the functional tests I use there is a preferred range as well, but it has a much narrower window (removing the outliers) which is where optimal health exists. Moreover, functional lab testing isn’t looking for a diagnosis, but instead allows me to identify imbalances within the hormonal, immune, detoxification, digestive, energy production and nervous systems of your body. There are likely internal stressors in these systems that will highly correlate with your symptoms and health complaints.
I will walk you through every marker I test and explain what it’s for and what it’s telling us. Then I will build a personalized protocol, just for you (Diet, Rest, Exercise, Stress Reduction, and Supplementation) that helps restore balance and supports your body’s own innate healing ability.
Together, we will implement this holistic health building protocol that will put your health back in your own hands, ultimately improving your wellness and stopping the cycle of trial and error. Plus, I will be here to help, encourage and support you every step of the way.
Are you ready to break the cycle of trial and error for good?